Man Pleads Not Guilty To Raping Mentally Disabled Woman On Bus

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A man accused of sexually assaulting a mentally disabled woman aboard a Metro bus last week pleaded not guilty to rape and other charges on Wednesday.

Kerry Trotter, 20, was charged with one count each of forcible rape and rape of an incompetent person and two counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object in connection to the Nov. 7 incident.

The 18-year-old victim, who has the mental capacity of a 10-year-old, told police she boarded the Metro bus around 5 p.m. at Jefferson and La Cienega boulevards when she noticed the suspect got on with her.

Police said the man followed the woman to the back of the bus and, almost immediately, raped her.

The only other passenger on the bus alerted the driver and he got on the intercom to tell them to knock it off, reported CBS2′s Randy Paige.

Authorities said the attack went on for 10 minutes before the driver stopped the bus at Sepulveda Boulevard and Slauson Avenue in Culver City, where Trotter exited.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials, however, said no one on the bus knew about the alleged rape or tried to get the driver’s attention.

“I looked at the (surveillance) tape twice,” said Mark Littman. “It appears (no one knew until the victim herself told the bus driver.)”

Littman said, based on the video, the young victim didn’t scream or make any effort to get away.

The suspect, who remains jailed on $285,000 bail, will return to court Nov. 21.